Mattie McGrath urges fast-track rural housing and planning cuts
Mattie McGrath spoke on 3 March 2021 about rural housing and planning, urging the minister to prioritise schemes that rejuvenate rural villages and towns. He called for cutting planning charges and fees, fast-tracking VET, and repurposing closed shops into living spaces to halt dereliction.
Appeal to the minister
McGrath appealed directly to the minister, drawing on his experience on the Housing Committee and pressing for action to break log jams and blockages that are delaying housing delivery.
Focus on rural towns and conversions
He urged the scheme to target the centres of Clonmel, Tipperary Town, Carnican Shore, Casual Care and parts of North Tipperary including Nina and Ross Grey. McGrath said converting closed businesses and shops into living spaces would stop dereliction and bring people back onto main streets.
Planning charges, fees and VET
McGrath called for planning charges and planning fees to be cut and for VET to be fast-tracked, arguing these measures would make conversions and new builds more viable. He said planning on rural land is currently blocked and that the 2020-2040 plan and other regulations are not helping.
Costs, timber and supply concerns
He warned that taxes, VET and charges add up to nearly 60% of building costs and criticised policies that increase timber costs while forestry supply has been cut and imports have risen. McGrath said these pressures, along with planning barriers, are preventing people from building homes on rural land.
Funding readiness and uptake
Highlighting the need to be shovel-ready, McGrath said he had heard on Morning Ireland that Nairma offered houses to almost every county and that many counties, including his own, refused the money. He urged that infrastructure and planning blockages be resolved so communities can take up available schemes.
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I too want to speak on this year today. Minister, I'm appealing to you. You've spent the last five years or four years on the Housing Committee, like myself. The talk was great. We talked as much as we would build castles with the talk. Look, there's log jams and there's blockages. And my previous speakers have said about the lack of infrastructure. It's not there. So any scheme that will help. But I want this scheme to focus on rejuvenating our rural villages and towns. The centre of Clonmel, the centre of Tipperary Town, the centre of Carnican Shore, the centre of Casual Care, and indeed up into North Tipperary, Nina and Ross Grey and all those places. They need to be. Get them living. Do two things. Cut out the planning charges. Cut out the planning fees. And cut out, if we could do something with the VET, to fast track those and to allow those closed businesses, shops, to be living spaces again. You do two things. You'll stop the dereliction and you'll have a living town. People on the main streets of a town which they've been hunted away from. And you have to do that, Minister. I'll examine that because it's not I can't believe again today to read in papers. I haven't read it, but I've heard it on Morning Ireland. That Nairma offered houses to almost every county in the country. And they refused the money, including my own. Which I mean, that's huge. We need to be literally moved up things here and be ready and be shovel ready. Because we're talking in schemes and bringing all the schemes we like. If you happen to infrastructure and planning then, planning on rural land can't be got. The huge issues and the 2020, 2040 plan is not helping that. Neither are the different regulations. And the cost of building. If you take the VET and the taxes and the charges out of it, it's nearly 60%. And the Greens are not policies are putting extra cost on timber. The lack of forestry timber has been cut here. The importation of all different materials now. And the importing issues from abroad. So I'm appealing to you, Minister. The log jams have to be broken to allow people, and allow people of all who have their way with all, and can get their own, and can build a house for themselves in rural land to allow them to build it. Iam under the �al Tr scratch, and the leftwierdz is genetically Fontan at Moregisman club. Aand for kert two or a major law ways to remove the price of Al-Nalış harbour drinks. Aand for Sundays in the real world is about acquiring trade names. And what happens if you want to do there is no change in trade.
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